"Our number one priority in Pitt County Schools is student safety", Mildred Council, chair of the county's board of education, said in a release.

"Without the presence of our teachers, normal operations will be disrupted and create possible issues regarding the order of our school day", said Dr. Ross Renfrow, school superintendent said in the statement.

"Despite our efforts throughout the weekend to find enough substitutes, including redeploying central office personnel, we've reached a tipping point where we won't have enough teachers in place to operate schools safely or to ensure a high-quality instructional day for students", Contreras said.

Standardized testing, including Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests, will go on as scheduled. Educators claim this rally would be unnecessary if our lawmakers had adequately funded teachers and public schools. Teachers had until May 9 to request personal leave in New Hanover County without being required to provide a reason.

Iredell-Statesville Schools now joins Charlotte-Mecklenburg, Wake County, Durham County, Chapel Hill-Carrboro and Mooresville Graded Schools in closing on May 16. There's not another option out there. To make up for the class time lost on the 16th, school days will be extended 18 minutes each day the following week.

"With 367 folks planning to be out, it boils down to having the capacity to supervise the schools as needed", Johnson said.

Mays said she hopes teachers can send a message to legislators in Raleigh next Wednesday that they are united. "I hold a master's degree, and most of my friends say, 'Why do you still teach?' If not me, then who?"

So we were pleased to learn yesterday that Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools has made a decision to cancel classes on May 16, as the Journal's Michael Bragg reported today.

Britney Dennis, a third-grade teacher at Irving Park Elementary, acknowledged the inconvenience of the teachers' action during a press conference in front of Smith High School on Monday. The NCAE is using #itspersonal on social media to promote the event.

"Students are suffering; our communities are suffering, and we need to make sure that our schools are well-funded, they're all staffed, and that we were attracting the best and the brightest to the profession", Piner said.

The North Carolina Association of Educators, which is organizing the teacher protest, said it has not heard from the state superintendent about next Wednesday's event but is hopeful he will advocate for more education funding.